Political Resume

Contact Information

Name Daniel Quinn
Location Vancouver British Columbia, Canada
Phone 778.238.6876
Email

Objective

To be able to look myself in the mirror and know that the work I'm doing is important and helpful to people.

Experience

January 2008 - Present (Community Advocate, Software Developer)

Vancouver Public Space Network

My involvement with the VPSN is still young, but I expect it to deepen with time. The VPSN is much like its Torontonian counterpart (below) with a few legal differences. Their goals are same however, and I've so far helped them write and manage an interactive mapping/geocoding database that will produce maps to aid in advocacy at City Hall as well as in community outreach.
January 2006 - August 2008 (Coordinator, Community Advocate)

Toronto Public Space Committee

The TPSC is a collection of people from various demographics who are all interested in the preservation of our public spaces. We worked together to support initiatives in and around Toronto that would improve the way we all interact with our city. With campaigns ranging from street furniture harmonisation to billboard variant denial, to gardening on privately held, but unused lands, The committee is becoming a real force in City Hall.

My involvement in the group was primarily with the advocacy component, namely the Elections Sub-Committee and later on in coordinating the CCTV in Public Spaces campaign. I managed volunteers, wrote campaign literature, and represented the committee in public consultations, television and radio interviews.
May 2005 - June 2005 (Lobbying)

Toronto Wakestock Festival

Upon hearing of the upcoming Wakestock festival and the associated controversy surrounding the amount of food packaging waste produced, I decided that I'd do what I could to minimise the damage.

I contacted a supplier of compostable packaging in the GTA, and with samples and product information in hand, went about tracking down who was at the top of the decision making process regarding food packaging on Toronto Island. I had to go through private business, government and ruthless secretaries before I was able to talk to the director of Beasley Amusements.

What followed was a series of phone calls and emails between the Beasley director, myself and the supplier which resulted in a tentative agreement between the two of them to switch to the more environmentally-friendly option.
October 2004 - September 2008 (Community Outreach)

Toronto Environmental Volunteers

TEVs are what I refer to as the city's "footsoldiers for the environment". They're the people who man the booths at city-sponsored events and Environment Days whose single purpose is to talk to and educate the public, while advocating environmentally-conscious ways of living. They have training sessions almost every week for the purpose of knowledge transfer, and then throughout the year they do outreach to the public – most often to explain to everyone what the city is doing to make the air and water cleaner. The work was as interesting as it was rewarding, and more importantly it helped people.

Education

2001 - 2001

Kwantlen Community College

Russia from Lenin to Gorbachev. One course to learn more about something less technical.
1998 - 1999

Vancouver Film School

Certificate of new media design.
1997 - 1998

Simon Fraser University

Attended courses in world religions, African history, macroeconomics, and political science.

Things Worth Noting

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